St Patrick's Catholic Primary School

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 05/04/2004 Inspector Name Beryl Witheridge

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Full Day Care Setting Name Honeypot Day Nursery Setting Address 136 Princes Avenue Chatham Kent ME5 8AJ

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Honeypot Day Nursery Address 136 Princes Avenue Chatham Kent ME5 8AJ

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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ABOUT THE INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public that the nursery education for funded three and four year old children is of an acceptable quality. Inspection of nursery education also identifies strengths and weaknesses so that providers can improve the quality of educational provision and help children to achieve the early learning goals (elgs) by the end of the Foundation Stage. This inspection report must be made available to all parents. If the setting has been inspected previously, an action plan will have been drawn up to tackle issues identified. This inspection, therefore, must also assess what progress has been made in the implementation of this plan.

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Information about the setting

Honeypot Day Nursery opened in 1990. It operates from three rooms in a detached bungalow in Walderslade. The day nursery serves the local area. There are currently 53 children from 3 months to 5 years on roll. This includes 9 funded 3-year-olds and 4 funded 4-year-olds. Children attend for a variety of sessions. Currently there are no children who have special needs and no children who speak English as an additional language.

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Information about the setting

The group opens five days a week all year round. Sessions are from 07.30 to 18.00. There are 13 part time and full time staff that work with the children. There are 8 staff who are qualified and 3 who are attending courses. The setting receives support from a teacher/mentor from the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership (EYDCP).

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Information about the setting

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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How effective is the nursery education?

Honeypot Day Nursery provision is acceptable and of good quality overall. Children are making generally good progress towards the early learning goals. Teaching is generally good. Most staff show a secure knowledge of how children learn and the early learning goals. Staff provide the children with good role models and they have a good relationship with the children. Staff work with children in small groups and allow time for one-to-one work. Staff introduce children to the natural world and encourage them to learn about caring for pets and to grow things. They provide children with a wide selection of activities, toys and equipment. They know the children well and understand their individual needs. Staff evaluate activities and look at ways of improving them. The room supervisors are responsible for the planning. Leadership and management is generally good. The staff work together well as a team, supporting each other and the children. Staff are able to identify training needs

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How effective is the nursery education?

and attend relevant courses. Room meetings are held regularly. A contact book is kept so all staff are aware of any issues. Staff use these meetings to discuss future learning needs of the children. Not all staff are involved in the planning. Plans are not always clear and areas of learning are sometimes missed. The differing needs of three and four-year-olds are not identified. Partnership with parents is very good. Parents are given a prospectus when their child first starts at the nursery. Newsletters are sent home every two months to keep parents up to date with events in the nursery. Weekly plans are displayed at the top and bottom of the stairs for parents to read. The children's records are available for the parents at all times. Parents are able to talk to staff about their child's progress at any time, generally at the beginning or end of the day. They can have an input into their child's future learning needs. Parents find staff friendly and approachable.

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What is being done well?

• Partnership with parents is very good. Parents are encouraged to come into the group and take an active interest in their child's progress. Children receive continuity in all areas of their care and learning. • Children's personal, social and emotional development is good. Children are confident and independent and form good relationships with staff and their peers. • Leadership and management is good. Staff work well together and are committed to the learning and development of the children. Children receive good support. • The staff teach the children by example; they are good role models. Children know how to behave and understand what is acceptable and what is not.

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What is being done well?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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What needs to be improved?

• the management of story time, allowing the older children to listen and enjoy the stories more • the set-up of the book corner, to make it more appealing and child friendly • the set-up of the computer table, to make it comfortable and easily accessible • the opportunities for encouraging children to link sounds to letters • the identification of children's learning needs in the planning • the re-introduction of staff appraisals

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What has improved since the last inspection?

At the last inspection the nursery was asked to - a) provide greater opportunities to explore features of living things by growing and nurturing seeds and plants - The children grow seeds. They visit the local area to see the wildlife such as lambs in the spring. They have fish in a tank in the playroom and tadpoles in a small pond in the garden. b) allow children to access technology and to question how things work, by providing more technological equipment, using children's computers, walkie-talkies and programmable and battery operated toys. Children now have access to battery operated toys and computers. c) provide children with opportunities to write their names with the appropriate use of upper and lower case letters - Children write their own names on their work. Younger children are supported by staff if they need help. d) ensure that children are able to recognise and use numbers to ten, by displaying

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What has improved since the last inspection?

a number frieze within the room - A number frieze is displayed around the walls. Children have a good understanding of number.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good The children are very sociable. They are able to form relationships, take turns and play together in groups. Children's behaviour is good and they acknowledge the difference between right and wrong. The children are very independent. They have self care and can select toys and work independently. It is sometimes difficult for the three and four-year-olds to concentrate on a task or complete an activity because the younger children in the room can distract them.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Significant Weaknesses Children are confident speakers with the ability to express themselves clearly and concisely. When all the children are together for story time it can be disruptive for the older children. The children have access to many books but the book corner is not well laid out and does not encourage the children to take an interest in the books available. The opportunities for children to freely use pens and pencils are limited. Staff do not always encourage the children to link sounds and letters.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children can count reliably up to ten. Some four-year-olds are capable of counting beyond this. They are able to recognise written numbers. There are opportunities provided for them to do simple addition and subtraction, with support from staff. The use of comparative and descriptive language is limited. Children need more opportunities for using calculation in practical play situations.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good The wall displays are relevant to the children. They are at child height and accessible. Children are able to describe the weather and how it makes them feel. They grow seeds and plants and care for the pets in the nursery. They learn to understand the natural world around them. Children understand about different events in their life and the lives of others. Children have access to a computer but the set-up is not comfortable or child friendly.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children are confident and move with control and co-ordination. They have a good sense of space. The room layout is not conducive to freedom of movement and children move with care. All children show a good ability at handling tools and equipment, both large and small, safely and competently.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children are able to explore media and materials and they show a great pride in their achievements. They have good imaginations and they co-operate well in their role-play situations. Music is used in many ways with the children; they can join in, sing songs and nursery rhymes or sometimes just listen quietly. The children have limited opportunities for free access to paint, sand and water indoors, more opportunities are provided when they play outside.

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Children's spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development is fostered

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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OUTCOME OF THE INSPECTION

The provision is acceptable and is of good quality overall. Children are making generally good progress towards the early learning goals. The next inspection will take place in three to four years time.

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WHAT THE SETTING NEEDS TO DO NEXT: THE KEY ISSUES

• Key issues - • identify children's individual learning needs in the planning • set up an appraisal system for staff. The provider must draw up an action plan within 40 working days of receipt of this report showing how the key issues detailed above will be addressed. The action plan must be made available to all parents and to the Local Authority if required. An evaluation of the action taken will form part of the next inspection of funded nursery education.

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WHAT THE SETTING NEEDS TO DO NEXT: THE KEY ISSUES

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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